Here's how Mazda's new HCCI engine works

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Mazda calls it “Sustainable Zoom-Zoom 2030.” Jason Fenske, the man behind (and in front of the camera for) Engineering Explained calls that silly, but the technology most certainly is not.

Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition, or HCCI, is a form of combustion that, like diesel, does not require spark. The compression alone ignites the fuel/air mixture much more efficiently than a conventional gasoline engine -- and it's cleaner than sooty, nitrous-oxide-plagued diesels. Mazda dubs it SkyActiv-X, the first production HCCI engine.

A homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) gasoline engine has been something of a holy grail for internal combustion engineers for decades, promising the fuel economy of diesel engines but ...

Fenske saw one major challenge with pulling this off: “There’s a narrow temperature range inside that cylinder for compression to have ignition to occur at the exact moment you want it to occur.” Mazda solved that problem by adding a spark plug to use under non-ideal circumstances, which introduces a second problem -- how to transition between using compression to ignite it and using a spark plug to ignite that air/fuel mixture. Apparently, Mazda solved that too.

Intrigued? Check out Fenske’s video on the Mazda HCCI technology, going into production for 2019.

Robin Warner
- Robin Warner is Editorial Manager at Autoweek. He once tried and failed to become a professional race car driver, but succeeded in learning about debt management and having a story to tell. A former engineer, Warner loves cars for their technology and capability.
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